Resignation not popular among players

PHILADELPHIA --- Not including any who hadn’t played a game all season while making $16.9 million, each Sixer Thursday was due at the PCOM Center for an end-of-the-season exit interview with Doug Collins, general manager Tony DiLeo and owner Josh Harris.

Oddly --- amazingly? --- none of them admitted to having been told in that meeting that the Sixers would have a new coach next season. Rather, they learned that only after Harris and then Collins officially revealed the news.

“We didn’t address that issue,” Thad Young said. “It was just pretty much one of those exit meetings where they tell me what they expect of me.”

Despite the day’s agenda, the Sixers were aware of the reports that Collins had coached his last game … not that they were quick to believe them.

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“I don’t know anything more than what you guys write in the paper and what you put on Twitter,” Spencer Hawes said. “So I am not going to waste my time speculating about it.”

That was literally no more than five minutes before Harris announced that Collins had resigned as head coach … against, it sounded, the better wishes of the most visible players.

“Me, personally, Coach hasn’t done anything but help me since he came here,” Young said. “He’s been a great role model, a great father figure, a great coach. I think this is the best coach I have had so far in my career. I have had four coaches and he’s by far the best. He is great at preparing for different situations and schemes. He’s always going to have to mentally and physically ready. He’s the best coach I’ve had.”

Collins coached three seasons with the Sixers, going 110-120 in the regular season. A passionate former player with a legendary drive, Collins was also known at times to become a professional burden on players --- among them, Evan Turner.

“From deep or from distance, no one understands what was said or what occurred or anything like that,” Turner said. “All you really take is, every now and then, a 15-second exchange of words in the heat of battle. He’s my coach. I appreciate the things he did for myself and my team. There was never any bad blood where it was crazy or anything like that.

“He made his decision and I think he did what he felt was best for him and the situation at the time. And you wish him well.”

Though the Sixers sputtered to a 34-48 record this season, the players resisted blaming the coaching staff.

“If you watched the way we finished up, we played every game to the end,” Hawes said. “We kept competing. Teams I have been on in the end chalk it up way before that. So when you look at the character of the team and how he coached us down to the end, you can’t say anything bad about that.”

While some Sixers may have had he occasional professional fender-bender with him, Collins helped Jrue Holiday develop as an All-Star point guard.

“I’m not sure if it’s the right way to put it,” Holiday said, “but he’s my man. I know I have grown so much with him as the coach.”

Among the players not available for comment Thursday was Andrew Bynum, who was excused from the process, the Sixers said. Bynum, who missed the entire season with knee troubles, will become a free agent July 1.